Gemini crypto exchange review for Singapore users

Gemini the exchange, not the AI

A quick clarification, because search engines mix the two up: this review is about Gemini the cryptocurrency exchange, founded in 2014 by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, not Google’s Gemini AI assistant. The exchange lives at gemini.com, and in Singapore it operates through Gemini Digital Payments Singapore Pte. Ltd. If a link or an app calls itself “Gemini” and asks for your exchange login, check the address carefully before you type anything.

Licence history and what changed

We start with regulation because, for Gemini, that is the story of the last two years. The company says it has served Singapore customers since 2020. For most of that time it did so through its US entity, Gemini Trust Company, which operated in Singapore under an exemption while its local application was pending.

• 2020Gemini begins serving customers in Singapore.
• May 2024SGD withdrawals by FAST switch from 0.55% to a flat S$3 fee.
• October 2024Gemini Digital Payments Singapore receives in-principle approval for a Major Payment Institution licence.
• 2 April 2025Singapore customers move from Gemini Trust Company to the local entity. Holdings and access are unaffected; customers are asked to accept new terms.
• February 2026Gemini announces it will leave the UK, the EEA and Australia and cut up to 200 jobs, keeping the US and Singapore.
• 8 September 2026Gemini announces the full MPI licence for digital payment token services.

For a Singapore customer, the practical effect is simple. Your account now sits with a locally licensed entity that MAS supervises directly, under the same rules as Coinbase, OKX SG or Coinhako: customer assets held in a statutory trust and segregated from the company’s own, risk awareness assessments, no leverage and no trading incentives for retail. Gemini says the licensed entity offers spot trading, custody and OTC services.

The February 2026 retreat is worth reading the right way. Gemini left markets it said were too thin to justify the cost, and Singapore was one of only two it kept. That is a vote of confidence. But the job cuts also reached Singapore, and a smaller team can mean slower support or fewer local features. We will update this page if that changes.

Verdict

Gemini is a conservative, well-regulated exchange that is easy to fund and easy to leave: free PayNow in, S$3 out. It has a reputation for security and a small, curated coin list rather than a sprawling one. Its problem in Singapore is cost. The standard app’s fees are among the highest on any licensed platform, and the order-book alternative is not as cheap as rivals’ either.

Operator

Gemini Digital Payments Singapore Pte. Ltd.

MAS licence

Major Payment Institution (DPT), September 2026; IPA October 2024

Sign-up

Singpass MyInfo supported

SGD in

PayNow, free, S$1 to S$200,000 per transfer

SGD out

FAST, S$3 flat

App fees

1.49% plus a ~1% convenience fee

Best for

Security-minded holders who buy infrequently

Fees: app vs ActiveTrader

Gemini prices the same purchase very differently depending on the screen you use.

On a S$1,000 buy, the standard app adds up to roughly S$25. That is five times what a 0.5% spread costs elsewhere, and far more than an order-book fee on OKX SG or Independent Reserve. If you use Gemini, use ActiveTrader and limit orders.

One caution about those ActiveTrader numbers. The entry tier we read on Gemini’s fee schedule page in October 2026 (0.60% maker, 1.20% taker) is higher than many older reviews quote. Gemini calculates your tier from whichever of your 30-day volume or asset balance gives the lower fee, and it may present different numbers inside your Singapore account. Treat the fee shown on your order preview as the one that counts. Our cheapest way to buy Bitcoin guide shows how these percentages turn into dollars.

PayNow in, FAST out

Funding is where Gemini is genuinely good. You get a PayNow QR in the app, scan it from your banking app and send between S$1 and S$200,000 per transfer, with no Gemini fee. Deposits usually arrive instantly. The first time, the QR code can take up to 24 hours to generate, so set it up before you actually need it.

PayNow is one-way on Gemini. When your first PayNow deposit succeeds, the account you sent from is added and verified automatically, and withdrawals go back to it by FAST for a flat S$3. That replaced a 0.55% fee in May 2024, which matters if you withdraw large amounts: on S$10,000, you now pay S$3 instead of S$55.

Send only from accounts in your own name. For limits and settlement times across platforms, see our PayNow guide, and for cashing out cleanly, the sell guide.

Opening an account and day-to-day use

Sign-up follows the pattern of every licensed platform in Singapore. You create a login, verify your identity, and complete a risk awareness assessment before you can trade. Gemini supports Singpass MyInfo, which pulls your name, NRIC or FIN and registered address from government records, so most residents finish verification in one sitting without uploading documents. If you cannot use MyInfo, expect the usual ID photo and selfie route, which takes longer.

The risk assessment is a short quiz on volatility, scams and the fact that crypto is not covered by deposit insurance. It is required by MAS’s consumer measures, not something Gemini invented, and you will meet the same thing on Coinbase, OKX SG or Coinhako.

Day to day, the app is clean and uncluttered, partly because there is less on it. There are no futures, no leverage and no trading promotions for Singapore retail, and the coin list is short. Gemini does not publish a Singapore coin count we could verify, so search the app for the specific coins you want before depositing. For security, set up an authenticator app or a hardware security key, and add your withdrawal addresses to an allowlist so that a stolen password alone cannot drain the account.

Pros and cons

Who it suits

Gemini suits a particular kind of buyer: someone who moves larger sums occasionally, values a conservative operator and wants cheap SGD movements in and out. If you deposit S$20,000 by PayNow, place one limit order on ActiveTrader and withdraw to a hardware wallet, Gemini’s costs look reasonable and its licence and history give you comfort.

It suits poorly anyone who buys small amounts often through the app, or who wants many altcoins. A monthly S$300 plan through the standard app would lose more than S$7 a month to fees, which is hard to justify when cheaper licensed options exist.

Alternatives

If you like Gemini’s careful style but want lower trading costs, OKX SG and Independent Reserve both offer free PayNow funding with cheaper order books. Coinbase is similar in its curated approach and adds XSGD. Coinhako is the local app with GrabPay. Crypto.com suits card spenders. For card purchases and a much broader coin list from a long-running international exchange that is not licensed by MAS, see our CEX.IO review. Every option is laid out on the exchange comparison, and the full register is on our MAS-licensed exchanges page.